Volatilizing apparatus



Jan. 9, 1951 LEVlN 2,537,357

VOLATILIZING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 10, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet l fiaroldlesierlevvh Jan. 9, 1951 H. L. LEVIN 2,537,357

VOLATILIZING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 10, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 firaldlesierlewfl Patented Jan. 9, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFF-ICE VOLATILIZING APPARATUS Harold Lester Levin, Nutley, N. J.

Application September 10, 1946, Serial No. 696,010

3 Claims. 1.

This invention relates generally to an improve ment in apparatus for liquid humidifiers or volatilizers and more particularly involves the type of volatilizer wherein a wick is used as an evaporation medium for fluids contained in bottles or like containers. More particularly, my invention relates to a supporting means for anliquid humidifying or volatilizing wick which has the property of selfeexpansion'sothat the. wick-or a considerable V proportion thereof is exposed to the atmosphere for ready evaporation upon removal ofthebottle closure.

The invention is readily adaptable to dispersion, by way of evaporation, of certainvolatile disinfectant odor reactants and aromaticsand more particularly, the liberation by way of volatilization of certain substances such as fungicides, insecticides, fumigants, perfumes, and related compositions. It will be. apparent that my invention is suitable for usewith-almost any. liquid having volatile. characteristics .and which vapor- V izes. readilyat normal temperatures A particu.-

larly useful adaptation .ofthe invention. would be its applicability tothe volatilizationof sub? stances such as thosenow already, marketed as atmospheric deodorants. This type of. product is a volatile liquid which has been dispensed in bottles containing, an ordinary cloth or felt wick, the latter being designed to be manually. withdrawn by the fingersa substantial distance out of the container to permit wreadyevaporation of the contents. The common purpose of .the ingredients so dispersed isito'better the air conditions in confined spaces by 'the liberation of pleasantly odored substances, and odor eliminating reactants.

The improvement 'of my invention consists in providing ameans for the automatic extension of the wick upon the removal of the container closure and for the supporting "of the wick in its then extended position.

The primary object of my invention, therefore, is to provide a-simple and inexpensive apparatus for automatically extending a wick from a container without the necessity of manually grasping the wick and pulling it from the container opening;

A- further object is to provide a simple'apparatus which can exerta pumping action on the air volatilizing wick-whereby the liquid 'is'caus'ed to completely permeate the wickandsmall amounts of entrained air may be completely expressedtherefrom.

With the above nurpossand ob ects inmind, thefollowing drawings andfdescription will more 2 I particularly illustrate the construction of my invention:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a container having a felt or cloth wick which is embraced by an helical spring, the cap being in place on the container;

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 but with the cap removed and the wick shown as partially extended from the bottle;

Figure 3 is a detailed sectional view, on the line 3-3 of Figure 1, of a three-part wick encircled by helical compressible means;

Figure l is a side elevation of a modified form of wick and spring with the closure in place upon the container;

Figure 5 is a side elevation, similar to Figure 4, of a modified form of wick and spring but with the container cap removed and showing the wick in extended position; and

Figure 6 is a detailed view of a modified form of construction relating to a wick holder attached to the container closure.

Referring to the drawings, a container, such as a bottle or jar, is illustrated at I. It may have .1 any usual type of screw or clamp closure 2, which is here illustrated as of the screw type, and it is shown as partially fi led with a type of li mid 3, such as that referred to above. A wick, which may he of cloth or fe t Or any type of material having properties conducive to capillary attraction; is indicated. at 4. Surrounding the wick 4 is a compressible means 5, here indicated as an helical spring, made of any type of material having resilient or spring-like qualities. This spring, at either end 6 and 6a, is formed into a shape roughly a proximatel a circle and bent so that these ends are parallel to the top and bottom of the bottle, respectively, when the wick and spring are in vertical position with respect to the container. snugly against the bottom of the container at one end and the underside of the closure at the other.

The upper portion of the helical spring member 5 is preferably constructed so that itgrasps the wick memh'er tightly at its upper terminal 7 end, the latter being literally jammed within the convolutions of the spring member, thereby providing support for the wick at this point and means whereby the wick is lifted upon extension of the spring member. The remaining portion of the wick-is preferably designed so as to fit snugly within the spring member when extended but not so tightly as toprevent longitudinal movement throughout the remaining portion The spring then fits flatly and thereof. The length of the wick is preferably such as to contact the bottom of the container when the spring member is in its extended position to assure contact at all times with even a small amount of liquid in the container.

Upon releasing or unscrewing the closure 2 the spring will be caused to expand or elongate and will assume a shape somewhat similar to that illustrated at a, forcing the wick to a considerable proportion of its length out of the container. It will thus be seen that the performance of the spring is such that the extension of the wick is automatically provided for and that once extended, the helical spring 5a causes the wick to remain in an extended position until the cap is replaced upon the bottle. Ordinarily, with atmospheric deodorants, disinfectants or any of the various types of perfumes and aromatics adaptable for use with my invention, the portion extending from the bottle will be sufiicient, over a period of time to dispense them readily into the atmosphere by capillary attraction through the wick and then by volatilization.

The type of wick illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 is more particularly shown in Figure 3, a view taken on the line 33 of Figure 1. This is a simple form of construction wherein there are three braided cloth or absorbent members 7 which are held in place in a triangular position with respect to each other by the helical spring 5. Since the section here shown is of the lower portion of the wick, the spring at this point does not, as hereinbefore stated, grasp the wick so firmly as to prevent longitudinal movement thereof. But the convclutions here shown are of sufiiclent snugness to squeeze the wick appre ciably when the spring member is compressed.

A further commercial embodiment of the invention is illustrated in Figure 4 wherein a modification of the spring member is illustrated at 8. The top portion of the spring is bent into a triangular shape 9 and provides a handle for ready access by the user and as a means of further extending the wick or completely removing the wick from the bottle. shown, when extended, or in a straight, vertical position, is of sufiicient length to protrude substantially beyond the opening of the container. It has two approximately horizontally bent convolutions I9, between which is a straight portion H. The number of convolutions it may of course be more or less than that shown, generally depending upon the size of the container used. The bent portions is) are slightly U-shaped and adapted to grasp the wick l2, here shown as a I double strand, and to firmly maintain the same in a position adjacent the portion H. With the closure on the bottle, the wick assumes a shape as indicated at i212 and is caused to curve more in one direction toward the side of the container, the wick being forced to approximate the contour of the spring member 8, which is also pushed more to one side as shown at I 3, assuming an oblique angle with the relatively straight portion II. Upon removal of the cap, in this modification, it will be apparent that the spring member will have a tendency to straighten out, the bottom portion thereof then assuming a position more nearly parallel to the wall ofthe container, as illustrated in Figure 5. This will cause the wick, which is firmly grasped in the U-shaped members, to be extended beyond the opening of the container. 1

Figure 6-illustrates a further modification in the form of an interconnecting means !4. the

The spring member here lower portion l5 of which is U-shaped and made to firmly grasp the wick toward its upper end, and the upper portion of which is adapted to be joined to the closure 2. The U-shaped portion I5 is extended as at l6 and the end I! bent downwardly in order to provide a rest adaptable for positioning upon the lip of the container, as shown. The extension rest IT is adapted to firmly hold the wick in this position. At the upper portion of the means 14 a hook is formed as at is adapted to be inserted into an opening 19 in a supporting member 29. The supporting member 28 may be L-shaped, the upper portion thereof being firmly affixed to the top of the container closure in any appropriate method such as by welding or bolting.

It will be readily apparent that this modification illustrates a simple expedient for extending the wick from the container. It will be understood, however, that the interconnecting means l4 may be used in conjunction with any spring means such as heretofore discussed. It may be desired to have some means for extension of the wick beyond the limit it would be projected by spring media, in which case the entire inter-connecting means as illustrated in Figure 6 could be formed upon the upper terminal end of either of the spring mem ers 5 or 8.

It will be noted that in the modification illustrated in Figure 4, I have provided a simple media for supporting a single strand of wick. This has been done by merely doubling equal lengths of wick and inserting the doubled length in to the two U-shaped members hereinbefore described.

In the first modification employing the helical spring member 5, it will be apparent that a convenient means has been provided whereby compression of the spring enables or exerts a pumping action upon the wick. The snug fit of the wick within the spring member has already been described. It will be apparent that being closely embraced by the helical spring, longitudinal movement of the latter, such as Will occur when the closure is first removed and then replaced, will cause first an extension of the wick, and then a squeezing action to be exerted thereupon, as the wick is reduced in length and compressed within the convolutions of the spring member. The compression of the wick results in the expression of any air particles from the wick and the elongation thereof causes the liquid to be sucked into the body of the wick, assuring its complete saturation. Such may be considered particularly important when, after periods of relatively long exposure to the atmosphere, the upper portion of the wick may become partially dried and filled with air particles and a complete rewetting of the wick is desired. This pumping action of extension and compression will, of course, take place automatically each time the cap is removed and replaced. The action may be compared to that of squeezing a sponge below the surface of a liquid and releasing the pressure to cause the sponge to become saturated.

Preferably, such liquid as is used in conjunctionwith my invention should be so designed that although it is volatile, its proportionate constituents will not be altered by a gradual evaporation of the same through the volatilizing wick. In other words, its original components will be present in the same proportions throughout the entire use of the contents of the contamer, and itsstrength will not be diminished through a reduction ofliquid volume. Such controlled evaporation contemplates, of course, an appropriate adjustment of the formula of the liquid used to produce vaporization at a uniform rate.

My invention has advantages not heretofore illustrated in the art. Previously there have been objections to the use of wick dispensed products, in that the wick means in the same must be fished out of the container with the result that the users fingers are soiled with the fluid and that an additional operation is necessitated. It is apparent that my invention obviates this difiiculty. Release of the closure immediately causes the wick to emerge from the container and the cap may be replaced again without the user coming into contact with the wick at any time during the entire operation.

Having thus described my invention, what I desire to claim is:

1. A volatilizing device for diffusing liquid into the air comprising a container having an opening and a closure for said opening, a non-rigid absorbent wick member of greater overall length than the internal height of said container, compressible spring means having one end in griping engagement with said member at the upper end thereof, the other end of said means being supported on the bottom of said container, at least one portion of said springmeans substantially surrounding said wick member intermediate the ends thereof, said means and said member being compressed within said container on positioning the closure over said opening, and when said closure is removed, said member being protruded through said opening by the force of said spring means.

2. A volatilizing device for diffusing liquid into the air comprising a container having an opening and a closure for said opening, a non-rigid absorbent wick member of greater over-all length than the internal height of said container, a compressible helical spring means surrounding the wick throughout its length and having its respective ends terminate in circular convolutions,

said convolutions being normally disposed in parallel planes, one of said circular convolutions grasping said member in gripping engagement at the upper end thereof, the other end of said means being supported on the bottom of said container, said means and said member being compressed within said container on positioning the closure over said opening, and when said closure is removed said member being protruded through said opening by the force of said helical spring means. i

3. A volatilizing device for diffusing liquid into the air comprising a container having an opening and a closure for said opening, a non-rigid absorbent wick member of greater over-all length than the internal height of said container, and a wire support and spring means for said wick member, said means comprising a plurality of sections, the upper section thereof extending beyond the upper end of said wick member, a straight intermediate section, and a lower spring section, said intermediate section being interconnected to said upper and lower sections by U-shaped convolutions on either side thereof, said convolutions gripping said wick member within the folds thereof, the lower of said convolutions permitting said lower section to bend angularly to said intermediate section when the closure is positioned over said opening, said support and spring means and said wick member being compressed within said container on positioning the closure over said opening, and when the closure is removed, said Wick member being protruded through the opening by the longitudinal thrust of said spring section.

HAROLD LESTER LEVIN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

